Travelers' Intercom
Istanbul hotel
My husband, Ed, and I stayed in Hotel Yigitalp Istanbul (Gencturk Cad. Cukur Cesme Sok. No. 38, Sehzadebasi, Istanbul, Turkey; phone +90 212 512 98 60) in October ’10.
Galápagos and Tip Top IV
For our 30th wedding anniversary, my wife, Janie, decided she wanted to tour the Galápagos Islands. After quite a bit of research on the Internet, we booked with Galápagos Travel (Aptos, CA; 800/969-9014). We could not have chosen a better organization.
Journey Through Ireland
My husband and I enjoyed a wonderful trip through Ireland and Northern Ireland, Aug. 7-28, 2010, orchestrated by Conn O’Scannlain, owner of Journey Through Ireland (University Place, WA; 800/828-0826).
China Highlights
My nephew, David, and I took a private tour of China, March 17-April 4, 2011, arranged by Karen Yang of China Highlights (No. 11 Binjiang Rd., Guilin, GX541002, P.R. China; phone toll-free, in China, 800/8793-007 or, in the US and Canada, 800/268-2918).
Kumasi, Ghana, inn
For travelers to West Africa seeking an accommodation in Kumasi, Ghana, the Four Villages Inn (Box KS 3374, Kumasi, Ghana; phone 233 51 22682 or mobile 020 766 7559) is an excellent choice — an inviting B&B in a quiet but very accessible neighborhood.
Curbing motion sickness
I read with interest the article by Lew Toulmin about motion sickness (June ’11, pg. 59). I have always been prone to motion sickness, though it has lessened with age, as he mentioned it would. (However, I’m not sure it’s not picking up again.)
Port times cut short
I read with interest the subscriber’s letter “Assigned Cabin Too Small” (March ’11, pg. 26), about his experience with Hurtigruten (Sunrise, FL; 866/552-0371).
Buenos Aires park in decline
I read the subscriber’s letter about pickpockets at Plaza San Martin in Buenos Aires, Argentina (April ’11, pg. 56). I witnessed this during my stay, Nov. 24-27, 2010.
Turkey with Treasures of Travel
Not just about ancient cities and monuments but also on the ethnic/cultural background of each place visited, our three-week tour “Eastern Turkey & the Black Sea” was a memorable experience.
Cruised aboard Costa Deliziosa
A travel companion and I took the 11-night cruise “Eastern Mediterranean & Alexandria, Egypt” aboard Costa Cruises’ Costa Deliziosa, Nov. 11-21, 2010. Excluding airfare, and with an “obstructed” ocean-view cabin, we each paid $1,300.
CEMAC for Cameroon
I have a recommendation for a great company for off-the-beaten-track travel in Africa. In June ’10 I took a private, independent tour of Cameroon from CEMAC Tours (Box 4877 Douala, Cameroon; phone +237 75 61 94 86 or 97 92 70 23).
Athens stay
From a trip my husband, Ed, and I took to Greece, I really recommend the following.
Holds back when haggling
I feel it is necessary to add my thoughts to the subscriber’s letter “Hints for Haggling” (May ’11, pg. 15).
Egypt after Mubarak
My husband, R.C., and I had booked our flights on Jan. 2, 2011, and committed to a trip to Egypt and Jordan for April 13-May 3. Then the uprisings began in Cairo. On Jan. 25, Internet and cell service were cut off. A full month would go by before we could make contact with our tour provider.
Caucasus with MIR
I took an extraordinary tour, “Treasures of the Trans-Caucasus: Classic Survey of Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia,” with MIR Corp. (Seattle, WA; 800/424-7289), May 4-18, 2010. The trip cost $6,395, land, and visas for Armenia and Azerbaijan added $246.
Costa, ‘designed to meet… interests of many cultures’
On Oct. 18, 2010, four of us left the US for an 11-day Mediterranean cruise on the Costa Cruises liner Costa Mediterranea, sailing from Savona/Genoa, Italy, to Rome and on to ports in Egypt, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey before returning to Savona on Oct. 31. My longtime girlfriend and I had a suite for $8,400.
A lifetime of travel
I was born in 1924 and have traveled all over the world. A couple of years ago, I sat down and wrote about some of my feelings and thoughts about the places I’ve been to and the people I’ve encountered. Here is some of what I wrote:
Turkey with Argeus
My wife and I took a 14-day tour of Istanbul and western Turkey, Sept. 18-Oct. 2, 2010. The tour with Argeus Tourism & Travel (Istiklal Cad. No.
Dnieper ‘uninteresting’
I read with interest the subscriber’s article “Cruising Ukraine’s Dnieper River” (May ’11, pg. 48), regarding her experience with Viking River Cruises.
Travel sketchbooks
When we were in Hong Kong in October ’09, it was raining too hard to hike Lamma Island, so we decided to look at old maps at Picture This! Gallery (Ste. 1308, 13th Floor, Office Tower, 9 Queen’s Rd., Central, Hong Kong, China; phone +852 2525 2820).